Uploaded September 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
“Whether it’s the rising cost of housing, unaffordable grocery bills, or an increasingly heavy tax burden, too many British Columbians feel the economy is not working for them,” says Bridgitte Anderson, the CEO and President of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade. Earlier this year as the threat of American tariffs loomed, the Board called on the provincial government to focus on growing the British Columbia economy by 3 percent.
“To build a future worthy of our aspirations and one we can be proud to pass on to the next generation, British Columbia must pursue policies that will boost our economic growth and raise our collective standard of living,” says Anderson. The Board projects that by growing the provincial GDP by 3 percent, the economy will grow, government revenues will increase, and the standard of living for all British Columbia residents will improve.
Anderson says, “We project that a boost of 3 percent will raise personal GDP by $9,000 and will add an additional $4.0 billion dollars to government revenues by 2030.” The challenge comes at a time when the provincial debt and deficit are at all-time highs. The province optimistically projects GDP growth of 1.8 percent, a figure that TD Economics challenges. TD projects a 1.5 percent growth for this year and falling to 1.3 percent next year.
We invited Bridgitte Anderson of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade to join us for a Conversation That Matters about the “Challenge” – the challenges and the opportunities to grow BC’s economy.
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The views discussed in this video are the opinions of our guests and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Oh Boy Productions or this show. Any images in this video are for fair use only, as we are a journalism outlet that seeks to illustrate the topic or guest involved.
ctm573 #economy #gdp #britishcolumbia
“Whether it’s the rising cost of housing, unaffordable grocery bills, or an increasingly heavy tax burden, too many British Columbians feel the economy is not working for them,” says Bridgitte Anderson, the CEO and President of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade. Earlier this year as the threat of American tariffs loomed, the Board called on the provincial government to focus on growing the British Columbia economy by 3 percent.
“To build a future worthy of our aspirations and one we can be proud to pass on to the next generation, British Columbia must pursue policies that will boost our economic growth and raise our collective standard of living,” says Anderson. The Board projects that by growing the provincial GDP by 3 percent, the economy will grow, government revenues will increase, and the standard of living for all British Columbia residents will improve.
Anderson says, “We project that a boost of 3 percent will raise personal GDP by $9,000 and will add an additional $4.0 billion dollars to government revenues by 2030.” The challenge comes at a time when the provincial debt and deficit are at all-time highs. The province optimistically projects GDP growth of 1.8 percent, a figure that TD Economics challenges. TD projects a 1.5 percent growth for this year and falling to 1.3 percent next year.
We invited Bridgitte Anderson of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade to join us for a Conversation That Matters about the “Challenge” – the challenges and the opportunities to grow BC’s economy.
---
Your support matters! Become a patron and subscribe: goo.gl/ypXyDs
The views discussed in this video are the opinions of our guests and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Oh Boy Productions or this show. Any images in this video are for fair use only, as we are a journalism outlet that seeks to illustrate the topic or guest involved.
ctm573 #economy #gdp #britishcolumbia
![Building for Growth (w/ Susannah Pierce, past CEO of Shell Canada)
In early 2025, the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade held a conference titled, “Building for Growth: Driving Investment in BC’s Future,” which had a stated goal of “promoting and championing private sector capital investment in our major projects across [British Columbia]’s economy” – projects that the Board of Trade states “account for over $230 billion in direct investment.”
The day-long event focused on three essential steps needed to send a signal to the world that BC is open for business and welcomes investment. The report generated from the findings of the event did send a message to both the provincial and federal governments: “ 1. Create a Fast and Competitive Permitting Process; 2. Accelerate Indigenous Participation in Collaboration with Business Community; 3. Develop Robust Industrial Policy that Attracts Investment These projects.”
With the introduction of Bill C-5 federally and Bills 14 and 15 provincially, both levels of government have taken steps to speed up the permitting process. Interestingly, the passage of those bills was done without consultation from First Nations – a move that was quickly downplayed as both levels of government reached out to First Nations leaders to work together.
The question remains: will new policies that attract investment be introduced and will those measures repair BC and Canada’s reputation as being an anti-resource development environment?
We invited Susannah Pierce, the past CEO of Shell Canada, who led the LNG Canada Phase I project from concept to implementation, to join us for a Conversation That Matters about BC’s ability to once again attract foreign direct investment to the province.
Your support matters! Become a patron and subscribe: https://goo.gl/ypXyDs
The views discussed in this video are the opinions of our guests and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Oh Boy Productions or this show. Any images in this video are for fair use only, as we are a journalism outlet that seeks to illustrate the topic or guest involved.
ctm582 #economy #britishcolumbia #bcpoli Building for Growth (w/ Susannah Pierce, past CEO of Shell Canada)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QFn1Ez3SJRI/mqdefault.jpg)
![Saving British Columbia’s Restaurants (w/ Ian Tostenson, BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association)
“Restaurants are at the heart of every community in [British Columbia] and almost 50% of them are struggling,” says Ian Tostenson, the President of the Restaurant and Foodservices Association. “Food, labour, and rent costs are rising and customer traffic is down.” It’s a trend that has been gaining momentum since COVID and the BCGEU strike that closed down liquor stores and pushed many operators to the brink of bankruptcy.
Tostenson says, “The strike was particularly difficult because it came at a time when provincial employment regulations were already forcing restaurant operators to cut back on employment.” According to Douglas Magazine, the industry dropped 10,800 positions between September 2023 and the end of 2024.
“70% of restaurants in the province have seen a drop in customers and profitability is down for a mind numbing 81% of restaurants,” says Tostenson, who is calling on the government to reduce payroll taxes, encourage the federal government to do the same, return all or part of WorkSafeBC’s $2.1 billion surplus to employers, and implement Save BC Restaurants’ main issues.
We invited Ian Tostenson of the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association to join us for a Conversation That Matters about the state of the province’s food services sector.
Your support matters! Become a patron and subscribe: https://goo.gl/ypXyDs
The views discussed in this video are the opinions of our guests and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Oh Boy Productions or this show. Any images in this video are for fair use only, as we are a journalism outlet that seeks to illustrate the topic or guest involved.
ctm591 #restaurants #britishcolumbia #economy Saving British Columbia’s Restaurants (w/ Ian Tostenson, BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QmeJX7fXKfY/mqdefault.jpg)





![The Odds of You Being You (w/ Ali Binazir) One in at least 400 quadrillion
The odds of you being born you – not your brother, not your sister, not your cousin. You. Binazir says, “When you factor in the 155,000 generations of your family that preceded you, the odds are one in 400 quadrillion against you being born [as] you.” In other words, you are a miracle.
ctm565 #humancreation #originsoflife #lifeforms The Odds of You Being You (w/ Ali Binazir) One in at least 400 quadrillion](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TVuawPJbFQo/mqdefault.jpg)


